forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in Ajdabiyah, during his funeral in Benghazi, March 23, 2011.

English:Machahir123 - Western warplanes hit Libyan tanks on a fifth night of airstrikes on Thursday but failed to stop Moammar Gadhafi's forces shelling rebel-held towns in the west or dislodge his armour in the east.

Air strikes destroyed government tanks on the outskirts of the rebel-held city of Misrata, but other tanks inside the city were not hit, a resident said.

Gadhafi's tanks had rolled back into Misrata under the cover of darkness and shelled the area near the town's main hospital, resuming their attack, residents and rebels said.

"The situation is very serious," a doctor in the western town said by telephone before the line was cut off.

A resident in rebel-held Zintan, southwest of Tripoli said Gadhafi forces were reinforcing there and rebels forces in the east were still pinned down outside the eastern town of Ajdabiyah after more than three days of trying to recapture it.

The continued fighting has strained an international coalition set up to try to stop Gadhafi's assault on Libyans seeking an end to his rule, with a growing list of countries wary of attacks on ground troops that could kill civilians.

Anti-aircraft fire reverberated above Tripoli during the night and loud explosions were heard, with residents saying smoke was rising from the restive eastern district of Tajoura.